Healing benefits of yoga

People who suffer from ongoing or recurrent bouts of back pain often have to try a number of different forms of exercise to find the most appropriate therapy to manage their pain. For many, yoga has proven to be a safe and effective way to finally alleviate many forms of back pain or neck pain and help prevent ongoing problems

How yoga can help

Yoga can provide several healing benefits for people with various types of back pain. For example, yoga can help by:

• Healing injured back muscles
• Speeding time to recover from an injury
• Preventing re-injury
• Helping maintain a regular level of daily activities and avoid disability

Among other things, yoga helps ease lower back pain by gently stretching and strengthening the muscles of the lower back and legs and increasing blood circulation, which in turn brings healing nutrients to the injured tissues.

Yoga background

Yoga is approximately 4,000 years old and is a scientific methodology aimed at uniting the mind, body and spirit. This bonding that occurs through yoga is said to bring about not only physical benefits, but mental benefits as well, taking the individual to a level that could not be reached by manipulating one factor alone. This unique characteristic has prompted many back pain patients to incorporate yoga as part of their treatment program.

Main components of yoga

There are many different types of yoga, each stressing a particular theory or mindset and each is comprised of numerous postures and areas of focus. While the actual practice of yoga is extremely extensive and detailed, in its essence yoga focuses on three main components:

1. Body position/posture
2. Breathing
3. Meditation/state of mind

In general, yoga is a very safe form of exercise for most people. For those with specific back conditions, it is advisable to speak with one's treating physician prior to starting yoga (or any exercise program). Anyone with severe or ongoing back pain should be evaluated by a health professional for an accurate diagnosis and treatment program before beginning yoga.

Many conditions can cause back pain. Depending on the individual's specific diagnosis, a yoga program can often be modified to maximize the benefits of yoga and avoid aggravating the condition. A good yoga teacher can usually provide instructions on special modifications for specific medical conditions.

Learning more about yoga

In theory, yoga helps people concentrate their energy on breathing and maintaining posture. The methodical breathing increases oxygen flow to the brain and sets a rhythm within the body and mind. This action coupled with the poses and sometimes meditation is said to dissipate stress and anxiety, therefore, relieving back pain caused by psychological and emotional factors.

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